MANAGUA, Nicaragua -- Julio Rocha, the former Nicaraguan Football Federation president convicted in the United States in a corruption scandal at FIFA, died on Saturday. He was 67.

Federation president Manuel Quintanilla said his predecessor died after an illness he had had "for several months."

Federation spokesman Moises Avalos told Nueva Radio Ya that Rocha had cancer. He added that family members petitioned for him to be able to return from the U.S. to die in his home country, "but unfortunately...

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The U.S. men's national team defeated Nicaragua 3-0 on Saturday to end the Gold Cup group stage on a positive note and claim first place in Group B. Joe Corona opened the scoring in the 36th minute while Kelyn Rowe added another in the 56th minute. With the U.S. needing a goal to leapfrog Panama in Group B, it was left to Matt Miazga to get the vital tally in the 88th minute.

It took a little longer than expected, but the United States did what it had to do to win Gold Cup Group B with a 3-0 victory over Nicaragua on Saturday evening at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland.

Positives

Out of the three group-stage matches, this was the best performance from the U.S., which really isn't saying that much. Yet there were some positives, namely Alejandro Bedoya and Kelyn Rowe in midfield. Matt Miazga and Matt Besler also worked well as the two center backs and could be the...

Matt Miazga scored in the 88th minute to cap the United States' 3-0 win over Nicaragua in Cleveland on Saturday, ensuring the Americans topped CONCACAF Gold Cup Group B on goals scored.

The U.S. needed to win by three goals to ensure they matched the plus-four goal difference of Panama, who beat Martinique 3-0 earlier in the day. They won the group on the next tiebreaker, goals scored, 7-6.

Though Joe Corona and Kelyn Rowe had the U.S. up by two goals, a pair of missed penalties had the Americans...

CLEVELAND -- For the U.S. men's national team, the final group-stage game of the Gold Cup is usually a time for fine-tuning: Perhaps a few players need a rest, or it's time to refine some tactical concepts.

Yet as the group stage concludes for the U.S. on Saturday against Nicaragua, the Americans find themselves in a very different place. Rather than tinkering, what manager Bruce Arena really needs from his side is for it to raise its game considerably and deliver a complete performance.